In Asian cuisine, noodles are an essential staple and there are many different types of noodles varying in appearance and texture. The primary ingredient for noodles is usually wheat, buckwheat, rice or other kinds of starch (milled into flour). To achieve certain flavors and textures, other ingredients like water, egg, oil, salt, lye, etc may be added.
Some commonly-known noodles by key ingredient are:
1) Wheat - la-mian, ramen, udon, many chinese noodles
2) Buckwheat - soba
3) Rice - rice vermicelli, flat/wide rice noodles
Certain noodles are quite versatile and can either be used for stir-fry or boiled. Others, like today's recipe, are more suited for a specific way of cooking (i.e. boiled). With ingredients of all-purpose flour, water, egg and salt, these noodles have a soft and smooth texture with a nice egg fragrance.
Process for making noodles: the dough is kneaded, then rolled/cut or hand-pulled into desired shapes and textures. The method I am using today involves 3 simple steps of kneading, rolling and cutting. Hand-pulled noodles (la-mian) requires some skills as it involves twisting, stretching and pulling the noodles - the technique is not easy to master but quite fascinating to watch.
Note: To serve these noodles, cook them in boiling water for 1-2 minutes (do not overcook - they cook quickly) and add to your favorite soup.
RECIPE FOR HANDMADE NOODLES
Serves 2
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Ingredients
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup water
1 egg
1 tsp salt
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Knead the dough till it becomes smooth and elastic (about 15 minutes).
Allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes in a bowl. Cover bowl with wet towel.
Separate dough into 3-4 portions. Dust the dough and countertop with flour, and roll out each portion as thin as possible.
Once dough reaches desired thickness, fold it up into layers. Make sure you sprinkle sufficient flour between each layer so the dough will not stick together when you cut it.
Cut dough into thin strips. Transfer noodles onto a plate, you are now ready to cook some fresh home-made noodles (these should be consumed as soon as possible).
To serve, cook them in boiling water for 1-2 minutes and add to your favorite soup.
It is Ban mien, isn't it? How did you eat it? It reminds me of a Udon restaurant I used to work when I was a student. The udon noodle was 'foot-made', we kept stepping on Udon dough for many hours for toughness.
ReplyDeleteYes you are right - this is ban-mian. I boil it and add to chicken soup with some chicken/shrimp and vegetables. The more you 'work' on the noodles, the more elastic/chewy they become.
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